Category Archives: Eastern Black Swallowtail

We have created a wonderful habitat for butterflies at the Pitney Meadows Community Gardens. Pictured above is the caterpillar of the Eastern Swallowtail butterfly, photographed by Margie I. on Saturday.

We also have several Monarchs in the caterpillar stage in the butterfly garden.

Yesterday, Emily Burkhard from WNYT News Channel 13 spent the afternoon at the Pitney Meadows Community Farm and did a great segment that included our beekeeper, Jenn Dunn; the plans for the 166-acre farm and the flourishing community gardens.

Burkhard and her videographer, Josh, were at the farm interviewing and enjoying the gardens and butterflies for several hours. During that time, Burkhard learned the process of extracting honey from bee hives, toured the community gardens, spoke with gardeners and asked great questions about plans for the farm’s future that were answered by Farm Director Ken Kleinpeter.

It was fun to be able to share what has been accomplished at Pitney Meadows in just a year.

The videography on the story captures the beauty of the farm and the continuation of its agricultural legacy.

Students from the Waldorf School in Saratoga Springs illustrated signs for the Pitney Meadows Community Gardens Monarch Waystation.

The five signs each depict an interesting fact about the butterflies that migrate thousands of miles and who have been in decline due to destruction of their habitat and the use of pesticides.

Pictured here are Michael Whitney, the practical arts teacher who built the cedar sign posts, and Elizabeth Straton, Community Relations.

The sign next to them shows the difference between a male and female butterfly. You didn’t know there was a way to tell a boy from a girl?

Come to the gardens, read the signs and maybe see some butterflies. The butterfly bed surrounding them contains plants that support the butterfly from egg to caterpillar to adult with an abundant supply of nectar rich flowers that bloom through the season. The garden also contains milkweed, the only plant the monarch caterpillar eats.

Thank you to the students who drew the illustrations. They are beautiful.